"Thump—thump!"
Beneath the archway, Ji Li had no chance to take even one step farther when two drumbeats, one fast and one slow, suddenly sounded from the depths within.
The consecutive beats pierced out from the darkness, leaving him no time to think before they abruptly rushed toward him.
Ji Li immediately sensed a Supernatural Aura as sharp as a blade striking in sync with the drumbeats.
Without hesitation, he drew the Stage Sword, braced himself on its hilt like a cane, and took half a step back with his Right Foot.
At the same time, a Black Line from between the bricks suddenly rose and swept through the spot he had just vacated, instantly severing a strand of Hair Strands stirred by his movement.
Having narrowly avoided the rising Black Line, Ji Li saw that the black grid traced by the cracks between the bricks beneath his feet showed signs of slowly rising as well.
That half-step backward seemed to have been his last chance to act. The moment he stepped onto the floor tiles, the black grid spread across the ground tightly locked around his entire ankle.
Ji Li's expression changed sharply. He had known the true crisis of tonight had only just begun, but he had not expected it to arrive so quickly.
As every clue flashed through his mind, he immediately realized the identity of tonight's Great Ghost—the true Night Watchman!
He stared into the depths beyond the archway, as though he could already see a pair of blurry eyes fixed on this place.
A ghost stood there, holding a gong in its left hand and clutching a clapper in its right. It hid in the farthest depths, using an unprecedented method to cruelly slaughter him.
Those drumbeats from before were precisely the Night Watchman's timekeeping